Chapter Summaries

Lin Bai’s rumors and staged military buildup kept the Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect from acting rashly, while the Demon Palace’s internal unrest worsened over his early enfeoffment of two thousand provinces. He decided to suppress the rebellions in Yaotai Thousand Provinces and Mystic Heart Thousand Provinces by force and summoned the Duanmu and Hu family leaders, along with Hu Zhiyao.

• Third God Child Shen Yunfan spread rumors that the Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect had attacked their own envoys, giving the Demon Palace control of public opinion.
• Shen Yunfan publicized a false claim that the Nine Underworlds Army had fifty million troops, while Lin Bai’s allies encouraged a pacifist faction within the rival sects.
• Saint Elder Shi Renshan told Lin Bai that hundreds of state realms in Yaotai Thousand Provinces and Mystic Heart Thousand Provinces had rebelled after their ruling clans lost control of the regions.
• Lin Bai and Saint Elder Shi Renshan agreed not to revoke the enfeoffments and decided that the rebellions had to be suppressed by force.
• Lin Bai left to handle the unrest and summoned Duanmu Xin, Hu Xiangdao, and Hu Zhiyao to the Imperial Palace.

Lin Bai tasked the Duanmu and Hu families with suppressing unrest in Yaotai Thousand Provinces and Mystic Heart Thousand Provinces, while anticipating a wider upheaval across territories he had granted to other families. He ordered surveillance of three likely trouble spots as reports arrived of Li Guxian’s frontier campaign and elders investigating the Azure Lotus Sect.

• Lin Bai gave Duanmu Xin and Hu Xiangdao intelligence about unrest in Yaotai Thousand Provinces and Mystic Heart Thousand Provinces, and they agreed to pacify their respective territories within one month.
• Lin Bai warned that further rebellions were likely and identified Nine Immortals Thousand Provinces, Jadeite Thousand Provinces, and Gold Sand Thousand Provinces as likely flashpoints because their families lacked Thousand Province Edicts.
• Lin Bai ordered Yu You to have Shen Yunfan strengthen Deep Probe Guard surveillance of those three territories.
• Yu You reported that Li Guxian’s army had reached the frontier, defeated Northern Region forces, and begun coordinating with Prince Liang of Chu to recover frontier lands.
• Yu You reported that Wang Shuyang, Yuan Chenhuan, and other elders had entered Azure Lotus Sect territory to investigate its ties to the Demon Subjugation Alliance and locate the alliance’s fighters.

Lin Bai learned that three kinds of rebellions were spreading through the Demon Palace’s territory as the Northern Region invaded, while the Duanmu and Hu families began restoring order in their assigned provinces. Shen Yunfan then brought urgent news to Lin Bai, but clarified that the Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect were not the source of the latest crisis.

• News of the Northern Region’s invasion spread through the Demon Palace’s territory, prompting family rivalries, schemes by powerful sects, and incursions by outside forces.
• The Duanmu Family and Hu Family sent their experts to the Yaotai Thousand Provinces and Mystic Heart Thousand Provinces, where Duanmu Xin and Hu Xiangdao began imposing control.
• Lin Bai and Old Wen discussed why families entrusted leadership to capable minds, cultivated successors with resources, and concealed reserve prodigies to preserve their lineages.
• Dao Child Yu You brought Shen Yunfan to Lin Bai, who feared the Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect had attacked.
• Shen Yunfan told Lin Bai that those sects remained divided by internal conflicts, partly because Lin Bai’s earlier maneuver had spread word of their plot against the envoy’s flying vessel.

Lin Bai learned that the He Family’s leaders had been assassinated and that hundreds of realms in the Yunhe Thousand Provinces had rebelled. He assembled the Dragon Protector Guard and He Family reinforcements aboard the Night King and set out to suppress the uprising.

• Third God Child Shen Yunfan reported that He Linghai, He Qing, and other He Family leaders had been assassinated, while roughly five hundred realms in the Yunhe Thousand Provinces had rebelled.
• Old Wen explained that the Guo Family was one of the few local forces capable of killing He Linghai, and Elder He Gongwu accused it of orchestrating the attack.
• Lin Bai promised to investigate, ordered the Dragon Protector Guard to assemble, and invited Elder He Gongwu to accompany him to the Yunhe Thousand Provinces.
• Lin Bai told Third God Child Shen Yunfan to remain in the Demon Palace and relay urgent messages, then learned that Saint Elder Luo Yuanjing had not finished forging his weapons.
• Elder He Gongwu brought more than five hundred He Family martial artists to join the Dragon Protector Guard aboard the Night King, and Lin Bai departed through a Space Node toward the Yunhe Thousand Provinces.

Lin Bai traveled through the Void toward Yunhe Thousand Provinces and sent Qi Lingyu a warning about the Insect Emperor’s tomb in Evil Moon Thousand Provinces, asking him to protect Eternal Devil Sect if possible. After entering Xuan Province, Lin Bai set out for Star Province in the concealed Night King cloud boat, determined not to alert his prey.

• Lin Bai asked Old Wen about Void Tombs and connected the Insect Emperor’s tomb, Evil Moon Sect, and Burial Sky Smoke to a possible secret involving Southern Border Insect Valley.
• Following Old Wen’s advice, Lin Bai wrote Qi Lingyu about the tomb and asked him to look after Eternal Devil Sect, then arranged for He Gongwu to send the letter through a Deep Probe Guard spy.
• Old Wen guided the Night King cloud boat to a Space Node in Xuan Province, and Lin Bai chose to enter Yunhe Thousand Provinces and travel by teleportation arrays toward Star Province.
• The Night King cloud boat emerged over a mountain forest, where members of the Li Family welcomed Lin Bai and he ordered them to keep his arrival secret.
• Old Wen activated the Night King’s concealment, making the enormous cloud boat vanish from sight.

Lin Bai traveled toward Star Province to investigate the massacre of the He Family and the rebellion across the Yunhe Thousand Provinces. In Yellow Sand City, he received intelligence revealing the scale of the uprising and evidence that overwhelming experts had wiped out the He Family, and he vowed to bring the killers to justice.

• Lin Bai ordered He Gongwu to obtain intelligence about the He Family deaths and the rebellious provinces, then chose to travel by teleportation array while Old Wen took the Night King to Star Province.
• On the journey, Lin Bai overheard that the Nine Great Sects and seventy-two major families had united with nearly four hundred provinces, dividing the Yunhe Thousand Provinces between the rebellious South Bank and the Guo Family-held North Bank.
• Lin Bai and his companions reached Yellow Sand City, where Zhang Qin, commander of the Deep Probe Guard's Yunhe branch, welcomed them and presented two intelligence scrolls.
• Zhang Qin reported that tens of thousands of He Family members had been found dead in their Lin Province clan lands, and Lin Bai's scroll showed that most had died with shattered heart meridians.
• Lin Bai concluded that experts of far greater cultivation had overwhelmed the He Family, and he vowed to capture the attackers and give the family an explanation.

Lin Bai studied the Guo Family and the rebellious alliance in Yunhe Thousand Provinces, then set out from Yellow Sand City for Star Province. On the way, thousands of martial artists surrounded him and Elder Shen Yuan, and an unknown expert answered Shen Yuan’s challenge.

• Lin Bai read Deep Probe Guard reports and identified the Guo Family as the leading suspect in the deaths of the He Family martial artists.
• Zhang Qin briefed Lin Bai on the Guo Family’s history, its powerful members, and the rebellious Nine Sects Alliance led by the Heavenly Dao Sect.
• Lin Bai ordered the Deep Probe Guard to arrange a meeting with the rebellious forces and decided to visit the Guo Family in Star Province first.
• Lin Bai and his companions left for the teleportation array, but Lin Bai sensed they were being followed and stopped on the main street.
• Thousands of martial artists surrounded Lin Bai and his companions, and Elder Shen Yuan called for their hidden leader to come out.
• An aged, sinister voice addressed Shen Yuan as Brother Shen from somewhere in Yellow Sand City.

Lin Bai and his companions were ambushed in Yellow Sand City by masked experts who claimed to belong to the Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect. Elder Shen Yuan drew off their Supreme Dao Fruit Realm expert, but the attackers blocked Lin Bai’s escape, and he realized someone in the Dragon Protector Guard had revealed his whereabouts.

• A hidden Supreme Dao Fruit Realm expert attacked Lin Bai, so Elder Shen Yuan engaged him and lured him away from the city.
• Dao Child Yu You used Old Wen’s jade token to summon help and led Lin Bai out while five Chaos Dao Fruit Realm experts protected him.
• Thirty or forty masked high-level martial artists arrived and said they wanted to take Lin Bai as a guest, accusing him of attacking their airships.
• Lin Bai questioned whether the attackers truly belonged to the Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect, and they ordered their forces to seize him.
• Five of Lin Bai’s protectors clashed with seven enemy Chaos Dao Fruit Realm experts as other attackers blocked Lin Bai and Dao Child Yu You’s escape.
• Lin Bai recognized that the attackers knew his numbers and movements, and concluded that a traitor in the Dragon Protector Guard had exposed him.

Lin Bai realized that the ambush had been planned with inside knowledge of the Dragon Protector Guard, and he tried to stall the attackers until Old Wen and Elder Yu Ce arrived. The attackers saw through his delay and charged, leaving Lin Bai to fight with only the Dragon Eye Flying Sword.

• Lin Bai concluded that someone within the Dragon Protector Guard had leaked his team’s movements, while Dao Child Yu You saved him from an attack and was badly injured.
• Lin Bai told Dao Child Yu You to stall the attackers because Old Wen and Elder Yu Ce were rushing to help.
• Lin Bai tried to delay the attackers by discussing their goal and pretending to agree to go with them, but one warrior realized he was buying time.
• The attackers launched their assault, and Lin Bai discovered that his Demon Sword and other flying swords were being reforged, so he summoned the Dragon Eye Flying Sword.

Lin Bai fought off a force sent to capture him, but the Primal Chaos Dao Fruit Realm experts overwhelmed him with coordinated attacks. After he summoned his Supreme Avatar and used every available weapon and avatar to hold them back, the enemy still had more than ten high-level martial artists attacking him.

• Lin Bai opened the battle with Crimson Lotus Karmic Fire Slash, forcing the pursuing martial artists back before the Primal Chaos Dao Fruit Realm experts coordinated an attack to capture him.
• Lin Bai found he could not use his sword formations because his treasured sword and flying swords were being reforged, while Dao Child Yu You tried to come to his aid despite his injuries.
• Lin Bai summoned his Supreme Avatar, which struck a Primal Chaos Dao Fruit Realm martial artist and helped divide the enemy force between itself and Lin Bai.
• Lin Bai used Crimson Lotus Sword Domain and released an Extraterrestrial Avatar with the Heaven Measuring Ruler to hold back more attackers.
• Lin Bai revived four Grand Yi Divine Weapons, but the enemy quickly knocked most aside and sealed the Alarming Seal.
• The enemy kept more than ten high-level martial artists focused on Lin Bai even after assigning others to restrain his avatars and weapons.

Lin Bai survived an ambush when Old Wen and Elder Yu Ce arrived and subdued the attackers, while the mysterious Supreme Dao Fruit Realm enemy escaped Elder Shen Yuan. Aboard the Night King, Lin Bai learned that the ambushers who delayed his allies were likely from the Netherworld.

• Old Wen arrived with Elder Yu Ce, used his divine sense to kill the weaker attackers, and captured nine Primal Chaos Dao Fruit Realm martial artists after Lin Bai ordered him to spare them.
• Lin Bai sent Elder Yu Ce to assist the Dragon Protector Guard; Elder Yu Ce captured three Chaos Dao Fruit Realm martial artists while four escaped, and Elder Shen Yuan reported that his Supreme Dao Fruit Realm opponent had fled.
• Old Wen warned Lin Bai that he had been targeted and revealed that unknown martial artists had delayed him and Elder Yu Ce in the void; the Night King then arrived, and Lin Bai ordered it onward to Star Province.
• In the Night King's council hall, Elder Shen Yuan said his opponent had used basic Overturning Heavens Sect techniques to disguise his origins, and Lin Bai questioned Old Wen about the void ambush.
• Old Wen said the attackers were Supreme Dao Fruit Realm martial artists from another plane, not Great Mystic Art Users, and identified them as being from the Netherworld.

Old Wen identified the attackers who had obstructed the group as Netherworld warriors, and Lin Bai interrogated twelve captured fighters aboard the Night King's airship. When one prisoner claimed they belonged to the Overturning Heavens Sect, Lin Bai exposed the claim as a lie and baited him into revealing that the prisoners came from elsewhere.

• Old Wen explained that Netherworld warriors had spirit bodies and could shift between physical form and nothingness, then said he had detected their distinctive aura among the attackers.
• Lin Bai ordered the twelve captured warriors brought before him, and Old Wen awakened them after their cultivation had been sealed and they had been bound.
• Lin Bai warned the prisoners that they would live or die together, then demanded their names, origins, and affiliations; when they stayed silent, he ordered them sent to the Devil Palace prison.
• A square-faced prisoner claimed the group belonged to the Overturning Heavens Sect, but Lin Bai argued that the sect and the Worship Heaven Sect would not send so many experts away while preparing for war.
• When the prisoner asked Lin Bai to reveal where he thought they came from, Lin Bai recognized that the question had exposed the claim as false and that the prisoners were neither from the Overturning Heavens Sect nor the Worship Heaven Sect.

Lin Bai interrogated twelve prisoners and used brutal punishments to force them to reveal their affiliations. The survivors admitted they served the Demon Subjugation Alliance, backed by the Azure Lotus Sect, and Lin Bai promised to let them leave the Devil Palace's territory in exchange for their cooperation.

• Lin Bai ordered Elder Shen Yuan's warriors to sever the prisoners' left legs after they lied about their identities.
• Liu Gui and the others revealed their names, origins, and that they were members of the Demon Subjugation Alliance.
• When Liu Gui claimed they served no faction, Lin Bai ordered their right legs cut off, then had Elder Shen Yuan kill the square-faced warrior who challenged him.
• The surviving prisoners agreed to cooperate and asked Lin Bai to let them leave the Devil Palace's territory, and Lin Bai agreed.
• The prisoners identified the Azure Lotus Sect as the faction supporting them within the Demon Subjugation Alliance.

Lin Bai interrogated captured Demon Subjugation Alliance martial artists and confirmed that the Azure Lotus Sect backed the alliance, while learning about its loose structure, goals, and communication network. The captives revealed that they had been ordered to take Lin Bai to Star Province, raising suspicions about the Guo Family, and Lin Bai ended by refusing to release them immediately.

• Lin Bai learned that the Demon Subjugation Alliance's martial artists did not know who attacked the Overturning Heavens Sect and Worship Heaven Sect's envoys because the alliance operated through scattered, temporary missions.
• A Dragon Protector Guard martial artist identified the alliance's communication token as a disguised Azure Lotus Sect Lotus Seed Voice Transmission Token.
• The captives said the Azure Lotus Sect had obtained information on Lin Bai's whereabouts and ordered them to bring him to Star Province, prompting Lin Bai to suspect the Guo Family might be connected to the alliance.
• The martial artists explained that the alliance sought territory and had four alliance masters representing groups from different territories, including one from the Azure Lotus Sect.
• Lin Bai finished questioning the captives and agreed to let them leave the Devil Palace's territory, but told them they could not leave yet.

Lin Bai captured and interrogated eleven Demon Subjugation Alliance martial artists, then uncovered evidence that the Azure Lotus Sect was behind the alliance and suspected it had help from Netherworld martial artists. He brought the evidence to a meeting with the Nine Underworlds Demon Palace’s leaders, where they discussed withholding it to avoid provoking a direct war.

• Lin Bai delayed the captives’ release, had Old Wen imprison them separately aboard the Night King, and promised to honor their agreement after the crisis was settled.
• Lin Bai set course for Star Province to meet the Guo Family and considered how the Demon Subjugation Alliance’s structure could be dismantled.
• Lin Bai inferred that Netherworld martial artists might be helping the Azure Lotus Sect and Demon Subjugation Alliance, then summoned the Devil Palace’s leaders to a meeting.
• Lin Bai showed the leaders the interrogation recording, which provided evidence that the Azure Lotus Sect stood behind the Demon Subjugation Alliance.
• Lin Bai advised the leaders not to reveal the evidence yet, warning that doing so could force the Azure Lotus Sect into a direct war with the Devil Palace.

Lin Bai argued that the Devil Palace should postpone confronting the Azure Lotus Sect while dealing with its other threats, and the Palace Lord gave him authority to handle the Demon Subjugation Alliance. Old Wen revealed that Netherworld warriors had blocked him and Elder Yu Ce, prompting the Palace Lord to vow that the Devil Realm would resist outside interference.

• Saint Elder Luo Yuanjing supported Lin Bai's proposal to keep the Azure Lotus Sect evidence secret for now, and the Palace Lord agreed to defer retaliation while entrusting Lin Bai with the Demon Subjugation Alliance.
• Lin Bai reported that a traitor in the Dragon Protector Guard may have leaked his itinerary, and the Palace Lord told him to investigate the matter himself.
• Saint Elder Shi Renshan criticized Old Wen and Elder Yu Ce for allowing Lin Bai to travel alone, but Lin Bai took responsibility for his decision.
• Old Wen told the meeting that Netherworld warriors had attacked him and Elder Yu Ce while they were traveling through the void, and he confirmed their origin from their distinctive spiritual energy.
• Lin Bai reasoned that the Azure Lotus Sect must have powerful support behind it, and the Palace Master declared that the Devil Realm would not tolerate other realms interfering in its affairs.

Lin Bai learned that the Northern Region had stalled the Demon Palace and Chu Nation at Eternal Night Pass, while the Chu Nation held back some of its forces. With the Palace Master ordering him to stabilize the Yunhe Thousand Provinces and the border front needing a trusted mediator, Lin Bai weighed where he was needed most and asked who commanded the Chu Nation’s forces.

• Lin Bai told the Demon Palace leaders he planned to investigate the Guo Family’s possible links to the He Family’s extermination, the attack on Yellow Sand City, and the Yunhe Thousand Provinces’ civil war.
• Li Guxian and the Palace Master urged Lin Bai to stabilize the Yunhe Thousand Provinces, and the Palace Master said the result mattered more than how Lin Bai achieved it.
• Li Guxian reported that the Demon Palace and Chu Nation had fought eight or nine major battles but still could not retake Eternal Night Pass from the Northern Region warriors.
• Li Guxian explained that the Chu Nation had cooperated but held back forces to protect Horizon Pass, and suggested Lin Bai mediate between the two allies.
• The Demon Palace elders disagreed over whether Lin Bai should go to the border or handle unrest within the territory, and Lin Bai asked whether the Northern Region could advance farther.
• After concluding that neither side could easily break through, Lin Bai asked who commanded the Chu Nation’s forces and whether Princess Chenxian, Chu Tinghan, Chu Tingxue, and Chu Zimo had reached the border.

Lin Bai and the Devil Palace leaders discussed the costly stalemate at the frontier and the need to rally support against the Northern Region. After the meeting, Lin Bai was ordered to suppress the rebellion in the Yunhe Thousand Provinces before reinforcing Li Guxian, while the Palace Lord prepared to seek support through the threat of mutual destruction.

• Lin Bai proposed writing to Chu Tinghan and Princess Chenxian, while Li Guxian argued that he might need to negotiate with Chu in person to secure its cooperation at the frontier.
• Li Guxian warned that the Devil Palace could not afford a prolonged war, and the Palace Lord promised supplies while urging her to end the fighting quickly.
• The Palace Lord revealed that, if necessary, he would threaten to enter the conflict and force the Devil Realm’s Great Mystic Art Users to support or mediate, and Li Guxian agreed to keep trying.
• The Palace Lord told Lin Bai to use the “Tyrannical Way for Troubled Times” against the Nine Sects and Seventy-Two Clans rebelling in the Yunhe Thousand Provinces, including the Guo Family, then reinforce Li Guxian.
• The Palace Lord tasked Saint Elder Shi Renshan with securing tribute, taxes, and troops from the territory’s lineages and sects, then ended the meeting and told Lin Bai his sword and flying sword would soon be ready.

The Guo Family and the Demon Subjugation Alliance agreed to make a final stand against Lin Bai in Star Province, while Lin Bai deduced their alliance and chose to enter the Guo Family’s territory anyway. The Night King reached Star Province, where a welcoming procession awaited it.

• In a secret chamber, the Guo Family ancestor threatened the Demon Subjugation Alliance into helping the Guo Family resist Lin Bai and the Devil Palace.
• Lin Bai discussed the threat with Old Wen and concluded that the Guo Family had likely enlisted the Demon Subjugation Alliance.
• Lin Bai decided to enter Star Province to give the Devil Palace a legitimate reason to destroy the Guo Family if they attacked him.
• Lin Bai ordered the Dragon Protector Guard to prepare for battle and Elder He Gongwu’s Deep Probe Guard to watch the Guo Family.
• After several days, the Night King entered Star Province, where martial artists had arranged a grand welcoming procession.

Lin Bai met the Guo Family, rulers of the Yunhe Thousand Provinces, and accepted their invitation to visit their ancestral land. He entered the family’s ceremonial hall with only Old Wen and Elder Shen Yuan, leaving the Night King and the Dragon Protector Guard outside, and the Guo Family began a lavish feast.

• Guo Qi led the Guo Family’s cloud boats to meet Lin Bai and invited the Demon Palace delegation to a feast.
• Lin Bai agreed to the invitation and had Old Wen pilot the Night King toward the Guo Family’s ancestral land in Star Province.
• Lin Bai left the Dragon Protector Guard and Dao Child Yu You aboard the Night King, then entered the Guo Family’s territory with Old Wen and Elder Shen Yuan.
• Guo Qi welcomed Lin Bai with an honor guard and seated him in Fenglian Hall for a banquet.
• Guo Qi offered Lin Bai attendants from the Guo Family, saying they had asked to serve him.